We all had that one path that we envision we would take with that one goal in mind. Whether it was to obtain that degree, become a doctor, or became an artist worthy of a packed venue. As we go through our life journey, we find that the goal is still there, we can see it. Only that one clear direct path has become a fragmented with branches and tangles. We keep forging on until for some reason, we pause and do the worst, we look back and not move forward.
It’s the worst because sometimes what we remember now from the past can fabricate a story that never existed. It only exists now to fill a gap within ourselves that we desperately need.
With a title of I Will Make You Mine, it is this strong single minded focus that drives the characters to reach back to their past and try to grab what they thought was glorious. Or for one character, it’s just the reminder to light the fire to move on forward now.
The movie is a semi-sequel to two movies that were previously shown at SXSW: Surrogate Valentine and Daylight Savings. I Will Make You Mine revisist characters from those movies in it’s own standalone movie. There are some slight references but watching the previous movies is not needed to understand I Will Make You Mine.
There are three different women that share a connection to one man, Goh Nakamura. Goh (who plays himself) had been a budding acoustic guitarist years ago. Now, he is struggling to continue his art while living with this daughter and the mother of his child, Erika (played by Ayako Fujiyani). Erika has recently lost her father and is dealing with the onslaught of memories, grief, and her struggle over all to just move one foot forward.
Goh’s best friend, Rachel (played by Lynn Chen) has been watching Goh distinctly through social media. The more she focuses on Goh and his songs, the more she distances away with dealing with her marriage. A marriage that is teetering on failure due to the husbands past cheating transgression. The more she watches Goh’s youtube videos or listen to his songs, the more she is reminded of who she used to be and re-envisioning her own relationship with Goh.
Finally there is Yea-Ming ( playing herself) who has harbored a long crush on Goh. When he arrives at her own acoustic guitar show, she and Goh built a connection of creating songs and teasing the possibility of a romance.
All three woman have or is currently cultivating a romantic relationship to Goh who doesn’t seem to see any of this. All he sees his music and the validation for him to pursue it all.
It all begins when Erika, Goh, and their daughter return to Los Angeles. Erika’s father has passed away and now she has to shoulder the burden of the funeral and sorting out their grief. Both situations set a far distance between her and Goh as they both process their own current situation in different ways. Being back in Los Angeles has Goh revising friends and rekindling unintended emotions.
The movie is set in various parts of Los Angeles, which doesn’t play a major defining role but is interesting in terms of where the characters are physically and in life. Rachel lives in the stylized and affluent house which one can assume is in the hills somewhere. She was and will always be that unattainable as not only does she live above the economic means of others, she is also married. She and Goh had always been friends but never went further. We find that she was aware of Goh’s romantic feelings but had never acted upon them. Now, with her trust and love in her husband fracturing, she clings to the only thing that she remembers as certain and pure. Once she hears that Goh and Erika are separated, this becomes an all out obsession to pursue Goh.
Yea Ming lives in Los Feliz, an area that is known for being semi affluent and edgy. Erika moves into her fathers home which can be anywhere. She is the one living that hustling artist life juggling babysitting gigs and live shows. Goh’s reappearance in her life in the guise of writing a new song together reignites her long simmering crush on him. Their time bonding over jokes and lyrics drives them closer and closer.
Even though this is a movie with three women circling around one man, it is definitely not a catty or obnoxious movie of who will end up the “winner” of Goh. Each person in the movie has their own driving force and it is really their own personal connections that will create the relationship. There were some great moments where it does make you wonder if this will be the moment that will clench the relationship such as when Yea Ming and Goh are joking about creating goofy lyrics. Ultimately it’s not Goh who drives the final decision. Each woman has their own epiphany of what they want to do.
The creative power behind the movie is Lynn Chen, who also stars as Rachel. Lynn Chen has been a personal favorite since seeing her on Nice Girls Crew. Every time her name pops up, I must check out her projects as she never fails to disappoint in what she brings to acting, producing directing. She has acted alongside Anna Akana in Go Back to China, lends her narrating skills to the Crazy Rich Asians audiobook or voiceacts in Call of Duty: Black Ops III & IV. I Will Make You Mine is Chen’s directorial debut.
It was Chen’s direct objective to feature a mainly female cast especially an Asian American cast that would normally not be featured so predominately in a movie.
Overall, I Will Make You Mine is the kind of movie to watch when you feel at a standstill or lost in your own life. It is a movie that offers of hope that after you navigate your own tangled path, you will be able to move forward. Even though you shouldn’t look back and stay focused on the past, sometimes it is the past that helps you just move one step forward.
And even better, the acoustic music in this movie is just beautiful. Especially the end credit of the movie:
I Will Make You Mine was supposed to premiere theatrically at the SXSW premiere. Due to the pandemic, the movie will be released on May 26, 2020 on Cable on Demand and Digital Platforms. It can also be pre-ordered on iTunes HERE.
